Juve can't 'only defend' at Real - Buffon

Gianluigi Buffon told Juventus they must have a balanced approach in the second leg against Real Madrid.

Published

13 May 2015

Juventus captain Gianluigi Buffon warned his team they cannot just sit back when they face Real Madrid on Wednesday.

The Serie A champions carry a 2-1 lead in the UEFA Champions League semi-final ahead of their trip to the Santiago Bernabeu.

Despite potentially being tempted to sit back in Spain, Buffon said that was perhaps the riskiest plan.

"We are in good company," he said.

"Many teams have lost at the Bernabeu and most keepers concede a goal, but it's inevitable that apart from their stadium and the home-team advantage, Real Madrid has such attacking potential that if we only defend, we'd come out losing.

"It's inevitable to see since the stats say that Real Madrid always scores at the Bernabeu. We won't change our way of playing but we have to be smart when playing tomorrow since we have a slight advantage."

Juve coach Massimiliano Allegri has said he expects midfielder Paul Pogba, who made his return from a hamstring injury on Saturday, to start.

Buffon said the 22-year-old France international was capable of making a difference, even if he cannot get through a full game.

"A player like Paul gives us another change and even if he doesn't play the 90 minutes," the goalkeeper said.

"He can play for 60-70 minutes at a top level as he knows how to do and this can help us work through possible problems."